Wildlife Promise » Bald eaglehttp://blog.nwf.org
The National Wildlife Federation's blogFri, 31 Jul 2015 19:00:24 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.3Remembering Exxon Valdezhttp://blog.nwf.org/2014/03/remembering-exxon-valdez/
http://blog.nwf.org/2014/03/remembering-exxon-valdez/#commentsThu, 27 Mar 2014 15:27:22 +0000http://blog.nwf.org/?p=93399Twenty-five years ago, the oil tanker Exxon Valdez crashed into a reef in Prince William Sound, Alaska. Eleven million gallons of oil contaminated over 11,000 square miles of ocean and shoreline. In just the first few days, the death toll was enormous. Around 250 bald eagles, 22 orcas, 300 seals, 3,500 sea otters, countless fish and marine species, and as many as 250,000 seabirds all succumbed to the oil’s effects.

The spill seeped into every facet of the ecosystem, attacking animals from both the inside and out. Though it was initially thought that the oil spill would only have a short term impact on the ecosystem, its effects continue to be felt to this day.

As Larry Schweiger, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation puts it, “The impacts of oil spills continue long after the TV cameras have gone home. It is still possible to find oil on the shores of Prince William Sound that is nearly as toxic as it was a quarter-century ago.”

All of this raises the question of just how far the oily tide has receded. The recovery effort has produced some decidedly mixed results among some of North America’s most iconic creatures:

1. Pacific Herring

Hallmark of the fishing industry, the herring of Prince William Sound remain badly damaged by the spill. In 1993 the population collapsed, and it has not recovered since. Even the reason for their low numbers remains badly understood, and it’s not certain whether the herring will ever rebound.

2. Killer Whales

Two pods of killer whale call Prince William Sound home. Both were hit hard by Exxon Valdez, and many mature orcas died in the following years. Slow to reproduce under normal circumstances, these losses have been hard to replace. One population that dwells in the Sound through the year has been slowly growing in number. Sadly the other more mobile pod still shows no signs of recovering.

4. Harbor Seals

The harbor seals of Prince William Sound had been struggling with declining prey before Exxon Valdez, but the resident population has since recovered. By 2005 the seal’s numbers were growing again, and the species is considered on the mend.

5. Sea Otters

The most recently recovered species, the numbers and quality of life for sea otters in the Sound finally returned to normal within the past year. In addition to the dangers of swimming through the oil, the sea otters suffered internal damage when they consumed oil tainted clams and other prey. Fortunately oil levels in these species dropped to a “safer” level for the otters.

As for the human race, 25 years on we do not seem to have learned our lessons well. In Galveston Bay, a ship carrying thick, sticky oil collided with another boat and spilled may have spilled as much as 168,000 gallons into the Bay. At the height of the season for migratory birds, the timing could not be worse.

Four years after Deepwater Horizon and 25 years after Exxon Valdez, it is time we commemorate these disasters by taking a step away from oil and other fossil fuels. We need to invest in a cleaner, greener future for energy if we want to ever break this cycle of ecological destruction and cleanup.

Barges sit along the Mississippi River near the confluence of the Missouri River.

America’s mightiest river, the Mississippi River, cuts through the middle of this country for more than 2,350 miles, providing habitat for hundreds of fish and wildlife species, but humans have attempted to control this scenic river for their own gain—often harming critical habitat. Right now, we have the opportunity to speak up for fish and wildlife, like the bald eagle, impacted by river projects in the upper portion of the Mississippi River.

Known by many nicknames, the muddy Mississippi River is a part of our history just as much as the American Revolution. It served as the pathway for early explorers and continues to serve as a highway for shipments to and from the American interior. As we have settled along its banks and utilized its waters, we have also modified the river for navigation with disastrous consequences to the river’s ecosystem.

For example, in just the middle Mississippi River—the reach from the entrance of the Missouri River to the confluence of the Ohio River—the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has built more than 1,375 river structures under its Regulating Works Project. While many hundreds of these structures have been constructed in just the past 30 years, the Corps has not examined the environmental impacts of those projects in an environmental impact statement (EIS) since 1976. This means both that the Corps has not comprehensively evaluated the adverse impacts of these activities in more than 35 years and has not identified less damaging alternatives to maintaining navigation in this reach of the river. During the same period, the Corps also has not updated its environmental reviews on the rest of its navigation maintenance activities.

Multiple science and government reports have shown that these activities have caused major problems for the river’s ecosystem. A key government study from 1999 concludes that the Corps’ activities were destroying critical habitats including the rivers’ backwaters, side channels and wetlands; altering water depth; causing nonnative species to flourish; and severely impacting native species. A 2008 study confirmed that this harm was still happening, with major problems for the fish and wildlife that rely on the Mississippi River and the Mississippi River Flyway.

[photo by Howard Sheridan]

The Mississippi River serves as the migratory flyway for sixty percent of North American birds. Birdwatchers flock to the banks of the Mississippi River every year to watch the iconic American symbol, the bald eagle, soar above the river bluffs and then dip into the river to catch fish. Unfortunately, the Corps’ navigation work has led to a significant decline in the fisheries and habitat along the upper Mississippi River.

But now there is a speck of light at the end of this dark tunnel; light that could become a beacon if we take advantage of it. The Corps is currently seeking public input on a new study to review the environmental and human impacts of its Regulating Works Program, and to determine alternative actions to minimize or mitigate those impacts. We need to tell the Corps to look at the full impacts of ALL their navigation efforts on the river and to develop alternative approaches that will help protect and restore the ecosystem of the Mighty Mississippi.

Take Action

Contact the Army Corps today and add your voice to calls for a thorough and comprehensive analysis of new, less damaging, methods for managing navigation on the Mississippi River that work for both people and wildlife. We only have until this Saturday, February 15th to influence the direction of the upcoming study.

Thousands of North Carolina residents living around the Dan River woke up last week to a disaster in their backyard. Millions of gallons of sludge from a retired Duke Energy coal-fired power plant spilled into a river that supplies drinking water for North Carolinians and Virginians. It took almost a full week to get the leak under control as an estimated 82,000 tons of ash and 27 million gallons of basin water polluted the river: enough to fill 73 Olympic-sized swimming pools.

The Dan River coal ash spill is the third largest in U.S. history. Coal ash is particularly pollutant and a byproduct of coal power generation. Tests of the water in the Dan River revealed levels of copper, aluminum, iron and arsenic (a carcinogen), which were all above safe levels. With such a huge influx of highly toxic chemicals, it will take a very long time for the ecology and wildlife of the Dan River to return to a healthy and safe level. This beautiful river, once enjoyed by wildlife and humans alike, will need a long recovery before it is safe to swim, fish, or drink the water.

The threat to wildlife

One of the more important species affected by this spill is probably not an animal you think about every day: bugs. Insects and microorganisms are the backbone of any ecosystem and their health can affect species all the way up the food chain. Jenny Edwards, program manager for the Dan River Basin Association, explains why these little critters are so important:

River otters are found in many North Carolina rivers and are threatened by spills like the one in the Dan River. Photo via USFWS

We are really concerned about the impact it’s going to have on wildlife starting toward the bottom of the food chain, which is the macroinvertebrates, or the bugs. Without those bugs in the river, no other life on the river is possible because those bugs feed the fish and the fish is, of course, what the heron and the bald eagle are hunting

As metals and toxins accumulate in the bugs and fish tissues, they are passed up the food chain, infecting species that rely on the river for food such as catfish, herons, deer, raccoons and bald eagles. People often fish in the Dan River for catfish and species like the bald eagle are an iconic part of American culture. They are all directly put at risk by this coal ash spill.

Speak out to hold Duke Energy accountable

Tell North Carolina Governor McCrory to take action to protect wildlife and communities from coal ash and to hold Duke Energy accountable for this devastating spill. Here are suggested tweets:

]]>http://blog.nwf.org/2014/02/coal-ash-spill-in-north-carolina-endangers-wildlife/feed/0Wildlife Friendly Solutions to Flooding and Other Water Challengeshttp://blog.nwf.org/2013/06/wildlife-friendly-solutions-to-flooding-and-other-water-challenges/
http://blog.nwf.org/2013/06/wildlife-friendly-solutions-to-flooding-and-other-water-challenges/#commentsFri, 21 Jun 2013 19:55:17 +0000http://blog.nwf.org/?p=81468Imagine your house regularly floods when the local river leaves its banks after a heavy rain. Now imagine that your Congressman announces a plan to build a levee along the river to protect you and your neighbors, and even better, the federal government is picking up more than half of the tab for this multi-million dollar levee. The decision is made and the levee is built.

Fast forward 10 years. Your house has not flooded since the levee went up, but neighborhoods upstream and downstream that never flooded before are now beginning to flood because your new levee is pushing the water you used to get in your basement, into their basements. You also notice that the fishing is not nearly as good in the river. This is because the new levee cut off the fish from their favorite rearing and spawning pools that would form in the river’s floodplain after a heavy rain. With the levee in place, the river is cut off from its floodplain and those fish nurseries have dried up. Even the bald eagles that you used to love watching fish in the river have moved on. You figure they don’t come around anymore, having just as much luck fishing as you do since the levee went up.

This hypothetical is real – but we can fix it

Unfortunately this story is not just in our imaginations. Time and time again the federal government sponsors levees and other large structural projects like sea walls and dams that solve a water challenge, but create a whole host of other public safety and wildlife impacts.

Fortunately America can do better. We have the ingenuity and knowhow to create a different future for our rivers and communities vulnerable to flooding. Instead of the federal government sponsoring a levee, strong new federal water planning guidelines could require the government to utilize nonstructural and restoration approaches to address river flooding. So instead of a levee, the federal government could restore wetlands along the river, which naturally store flood waters, and have the added benefits of cleaning water, and providing wildlife habitat.

Let’s go back in time again to when your Congressman is working with the federal government on solving your flooding problem. This time, instead of the levee, the federal government, guided by stronger federal water guidelines, chose to convert an abandoned industrial park along the river into wetlands.

Now fast forward 10 years. The wetlands are in place and you notice that the fishing is better! You also have a boardwalk through the new wetlands, which is your favorite place to see a nesting pair of bald eagles that just moved in, because the fishing is so good. And your neighboring towns have less flooding and cleaner water with more fish.

These better restoration solutions can become a reality in communities all over the country, but we need stronger federal water planning guidelines to get us there. National Wildlife Federation has been working for more than a decade on new federal water planning guidelines that require low impact, restoration and non-structural approaches to addressing flooding and other water challenges when those measures could provide an appropriate level of protection or benefits. But the White House’s latest “draft Interagency Guidelines” do not include this requirement.

Take Action for Clean Water and Wildlife!

Fortunately it is not too late to make a difference! The White House is taking comments until Thursday June 27th on new “draft Interagency Guidelines” where they can, if they choose to, include this requirement.

Tell the White House that we don’t need to choose between a healthy environment and solving water challenges – that we need strong federal water guidelines that only allow levees and other structural projects to be built when nonstructural and restoration solution are not available.

A bald eagle flies off with its meal

If you enjoy photos of wildlife and nature, check out the 43rd Annual National Wildlife Photo Contest. Share and vote for your favorite entries or consider entering your own by July 15th for a chance to win one of the cash prizes or the grand prize: a trip to see and photograph wild polar bears in Canada!

Eagle taking flight. This photo, by Robert Miller, is from the National Wildlife Photo Contest.

The most iconic of Endangered Species Act success stories is the recovery of the bald eagle, our national symbol. Magnificent in stature and beautiful to behold, the bald eagle very nearly disappeared from the lower-48 states, in contrast to an historic population of as many as 100,000.

The bald eagle has been protected for some 95 years, but continued killing was the primary cause for passage of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act in 1940. While that helped, an even bigger challenge in the mid-20th century was the widespread use of DDT, which led to a dangerously low population of 500 or fewer bald eagle pairs in the lower-48 states by 1963. Under the Endangered Species Preservation Act of 1966, a precursor to the Endangered Species Act of 1973, the bald eagle was officially declared an endangered species in 1967.

Road to Recovery

Enactment of the Endangered Species Act and the banning of DDT were both critical actions that lead to the recovery of the bald eagle. With the banning in 1972 of DDT — the cause of egg-shell thinning and breakage — the stage was set for nationwide efforts to recover the bald eagle via the Endangered Species Act.

The National Wildlife Federation toured the country with a captive bald eagle named Migisiwa to increase public awareness and support for recovery of bald eagles. We also posted a $1,000 award for anyone providing information leading to conviction for killing a bald eagle.

The National Wildlife Federation undertook efforts in the field to help bald eagles recover in the Chesapeake Bay. We also started the nationwide Midwinter Bald Eagle Survey in 1979 to monitor bald eagle populations, coordinating it until 1992, whereupon it was handed over to the federal government for continuation.

A bald eagle in flight. This photo, by Clinton Ferrara, is from the National Wildlife Photo Contest.

Bird lovers from around the US have been given an opportunity to see a rare guest, the snowy owl. Usually held to the colder northern latitudes, these owls have been driven south by what experts assume is a shortage of lemmings in the arctic this year. With lemmings making up most of their arctic diet they have been forced to come further south to find food among the small rodents and other animals that provide a substitute to the lemming. Here in the Pacific Northwest we have been particularly lucky to get one large group of owls staying in Boundary Bay, British Columbia.

I could not pass up the opportunity to see the owls in the wild. It is an easy drive from Seattle to Boundary Bay. After crossing the border at the Peace Arch I only have a half hour more of driving before finding myself on a gravel covered dike separating the tide flats of the bay from the agricultural fields beyond. The tide flats provide habitat for a wide range of birds. Scanning the beach I see 8 eagles hunting small fish in the shallows. A great blue heron stalks its prey in the small grassy tufts of the tide flat as a trio of brilliant white swans swoop overhead.

Photo by: Bryn Fluharty

The serine quiet of the southern part of the dike is soon behind me as I approach the owl area. One of the more unique aspects is the accessibility of the owls. To my right I can see the rolling green of a golf course and hear the soft hum of planes taking off from the Boundary Bay airport, just up the road. No more than 100 feet from the parking lot there are around 30 people huddled in small groups against the cold drizzle. Giant camera lenses poke out from beneath protective tarps as photographers wait to capture that ‘perfect’ shot.

The owls for their part are ignoring most of their now constant paparazzi. Today there are around 18 of the owls sitting on the tangled mess of felled logs and old pilings, a mere 30 feet away from the trail. Snowy owls stand about 2 feet tall and have an average wingspan of around 5 feet. I am close enough to see their golden yellow eyes as they swivel their head in my direction. They range from almost pure white to a heavily speckled grey brown. There is little movement in the group. At times one will stretch a wing or turn its head to gaze inquisitively at something in the distance.

They have been here since December and are predicted to stay through March when conditions should improve enough for them to move on. With the uniqueness of this event it has been well publicized by the local media which in turn has caused crowds to flock here for easy access bird watching. This is an amazing opportunity to help connect people with nature in a way that is accessible to anyone willing to make the drive.

Photo by: Bryn Fluharty

For some however this amazing opportunity is not enough. Seeking that ‘perfect’ shot many visitors have ignored the signs, going off the path for an even closer view. These types of actions are unfortunately all too common in wildlife viewing, with people wandering off of marked trails to get closer to animals. These actions have a negative impact on the wildlife and their habitat. Stepping off of the trail can cause damage to the landscape and have a negative impact on the bird or other animal that one is trying to get a better look at. Getting too close to wildlife can also pose a threat to human health as many animals to not appreciate the infringement into their space and can harm people who are too close.

Bird watching is a wonderful way to connect with nature and there are so many different types of birds to enjoy! Learning how to identify birds and be a responsible bird watcher can help you Be Out There and enjoy the birds in your own area!

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